Letter: Board out of control

The De Soto School Board is out of control. According to the Shawnee Dispatch dated Feb. 7, 2007, the school board voted six to one to ask the Kansas Board of Tax Appeals for the authority to raise additional property taxes. If my memory is correct, the patrons of the district voted down a tax increase when the most recent attempt to raise taxes was defeated.

Is going through the Kansas Board of Tax Appeals to get the authority to raise the mill levy nothing more than a way to circumvent the will of the patrons? It would appear to be the case.

The reasoning for the needed additional funds was stated "to help pay for costs associated with opening two new schools next year."

Why in the world would two new schools be built without the proper funds to equip them? Weren't those costs projected and included?

As a retired patron on fixed income, it is becoming harder to keep up with all the tax increases. Isn't it time our school board spent time trying to reduce costs, rather than determining ways to get more money?

This is the case with the patrons; as expenditures go up we must find ways to adjust our household budgets to accommodate these constant increases. We are fighting a losing battle around here.

I urgently request that you work with your board to adjust the current budget to find your needed monies. Just adding more to your district's coffers doesn't seem to work.